


Red Skull vs. Avengers Academy (the tentacles are new)

by AngeNoir



Series: C/IM Bingo Card: Spring 2016 [2]
Category: Avengers Academy (Video Game)
Genre: (the non-sexy kind), Civil War event, Don't Quit Your Day Job, M/M, Miscommunication, Tentacles, captive audience
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-09
Updated: 2016-07-09
Packaged: 2018-07-22 12:02:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7438022
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngeNoir/pseuds/AngeNoir
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In his defense, Tony thought, he had been having a <em>really incredible brainstorm</em> about a suit of armor. Surely he could be forgiven for not noticing, well.</p><p>Any of this, really.</p><p> </p><p>  <em>In which Tony fails to look up most of the time, but being dangled by tentacles underneath a flying ship leaves little to do but talk with the person who's dangling up there with him. Even if it is Steve. And that they haven't spoken since the beginning of their little (big) fight.</em></p><p> </p><p>  <em>(Thankfully, his friends are not as unobservant as he is. Plus, they have literal flying classes. They were bound to notice two kicking figures sooner or later.)</em></p>
            </blockquote>





	Red Skull vs. Avengers Academy (the tentacles are new)

**Author's Note:**

> Once again, this is one-half-partly to fill my "don't quit your day job" square on my bingo card, and one-half-partly for the [Cap/Iron Man Tiny Reverse Bang](http://capim-tinybang.tumblr.com/).
> 
> Also, fill for the Tiny Reverse Bang art (codename: Classic, the top one) which can be found [here](http://capim-tinybang.tumblr.com/post/146796580188/cap-im-tiny-rb-round-3-classic-and-confession).

In his defense, Tony thought, he had been having a _really incredible brainstorm_ about a suit of armor. Surely he could be forgiven for not noticing, well.

Any of this, really.

He was currently suspended from the ground, high in the air, hanging underneath the Hydra mothership or whatever-the-fuck the school was calling it, and he was desperately hoping JARVIS saw this, because he sure as hell would need the suit to survive if he ended up falling.

Not that he planned on falling, but it did look as if, if he got out of the tentacles, the only way he’d go would be down. And it was a _long_ way down.

Across from where he was hanging, Steve glowered at him. Tony didn’t know why – it wasn’t as if it was _his_ fault Steve was hanging from a tentacle, now, was it? – and frankly he didn’t appreciate the glare.

He hung out as long as he could, but silence had never been his friend. With an explosive sigh, he slumped down against the tentacle (this position hurt like _hell_ whoever thought hanging from a tentacle would be a good way to immobilize captives was a fucking _sadist_ ) and groaned. “It’s not _my_ fault you’re hanging there. You were here when I got here!”

“Your tower is _right underneath_ the Hydra ship!” Steve said, voice full of indignation and his eyes flashing. “How could you not look up and see me hanging here? I’ve been here for _hours_!”

“I’m a little busy coming up with designs for a super-cool new armor,” Tony snarked back. “I didn’t know I needed to put on my spy suit and go looking for you! It’s not like you were talking to me, anyway.”

His voice trailed off, and he tried to keep his voice strong and casual but he worried he didn’t quiet manage it. It hurt to have Steve mad at him, to have Steve throw himself in danger again and again when Tony could create robots to do that instead, could limit the damage to humans with no more than a modicum of effort. Steve had stopped talking to him because of their whole disagreement, and even now, he didn’t look happy at all to see Tony.

…Then again, they were both being held high above the ground by tentacles. Maybe that had something to do with it.

Clearing his throat, Tony wiggled to keep upright – it _hurt_ , he didn’t even realize how weak his core muscles were until he had to basically plank in hopes that it would hold him aloft – and grumbled, “I could be a spy, if I had to. Better than _you_.”

“You _didn’t notice me dangling from a giant green tentacle_ ,” Steve hissed at him.

It wasn’t as if Tony could spread his arms the way he wanted to, or gesticulate, so instead he flailed his head back and forth as he growled, “Look, _Rogers_ , it’s not as if you’re telling me where you’re going anymore. You refuse to speak to me, you _steal my friends_ , and you completely disregard my robots! My _robots_ , Steve! I made them so you don’t have to fucking get hurt and instead you throw yourself into battle _anyway_!”

Steve opened his mouth, and then closed it. His brows furrowed together, and he twisted a little in the tentacle that held him still. When it didn’t give, he let out a sigh and hung against the coil. “Look… Tony. I just think we need to be ready. Sometimes, tech fails. Not all the time, not now, and your robots are amazing, you know I know that. I just think we need to be prepared. Just in case. It’s _always_ better to be prepared to have to handle things without technology. I’m terrified _all the time_ that Hydra will get wise and create – I don’t know, a giant EMP or something. Something that will knock you out of the sky, and I won’t be there to catch you.”

Reflexively, Tony muttered, “I’ve created EMP shielding. It should hold. I mean, I haven’t had time to really test it…” He trailed off, staring at Steve’s stricken face, and licked his lips. “I – Steve, I didn’t… know. I just wanted to keep you safe. You may be superhuman, but you – you’re still human. You’ve still got squishy bits and – robots don’t. Have squishy bits. Is what I’m trying to say.”

Steve’s eyes turned soft, and he tried to lean forward, hair flipping about in the light wind, but just then a floating disc descended from the Hydra ship, and on it stood Red Skull, hands on his hips, chest thrown out and puffed up.

Tony let out a groan and slumped in the green coils. Typical.

Red Skull kept his nose-less face in the air until the disc lowered until Red Skull was a tad bit higher than them. Then he let out loud cackle and put his balled up fists in the air. “I knew your disagreement with one another would allow me the perfect opportunity to seek my revenge on the great Captain America!”

With another cackle – more like a high-pitched giggle – he turned on his heel and began pacing back and forth, heels clicking a staccato beat against the hard material. “Now, that I have you within my grasp, Avengers Academy lies defenseless and weak – easy pickings for my troops. We can hunt down that traitor, the she-witch that thinks she could be head of Hydra! Hydra will consume the Academy, and take over the treasures that lie buried in the timefog, and start a new era of power and control!”

“Yeah, yeah,” came a tiny voice, exasperated and just a little smug. “Anyone tell you you suck at being the bad guy? All I’m saying is, don’t quit your day job. Hanging two students above the school they go to? A school that has like, students who can actually fly _and_ has Quinjet classes as a mandatory part of our education?”

With a squawk, Red Skull whipped around only to see Jan resizing to her full height and punching him straight in the mouth. Stumbling over his feet, he tripped off the disc and let out a terrified screech.

“Ugh. I think he wet his pants,” came a disgusted voice, and then Falcon swung into view, gripping the shoulders of Red Skull’s black jacket. “Rhodes, go ahead and get them down.”

Tony turned and grinned at the sight of War Machine hovering there. “Rhodey!” he said with a huge smile. “You came!”

“You think we wouldn’t notice when you suddenly stopped texting us, whining about how Steve was still ignoring you and trying to outdo you? Pepper knew instantly when you were gone.” Rhodey grunted as he searched for the joints of the coil, looking for a way to loosen the thick cable without having it drop Tony to the ground far, far below.

“Yeah, and Steve’s been destressing by dancing at the Club – when he didn’t show up, I knew there was something fishy going on. Rhodes contacting me was the icing on the cake,” Sam drawled, giving Red Skull a shake when the kicking male started to shout about how he’d have his revenge. “Well, maybe one good thing came from all this. Have you two idiots had time to talk this ridiculous fight this out?”

Tony glanced over at Steve, who was looking at him fondly as Janet moved to free Steve from the tentacle.

“I think we managed to figure something out,” he said, voice soft, and Steve’s gaze met his own.

Tony blushed and glanced away. Okay, so maybe he wasn’t all that upset at Steve anymore for deciding to train baby SHIELD agents instead of letting Tony’s robots do the job, but he was still going to build that armor.

It would look so _awesome_.


End file.
